Tulip Blossom (Confessions of a Wasteland Pony)
Tulip Blossom is a side character in the audio drama Confessions of a Wasteland Pony. Her origin story is told by her husband, Doctor Greenshift, in the second episode, The Ghoul Doctor. Biography Professor Tulip Blossom is an earth pony ghoul who was in her mid-30's when The Great War happened. Being a Dusselhoof native, same as Doctor Greenshift, Tulip had a love of history and eventually became a professor at Blackwood University. After a decade of archiving, she had become the foremost cultural historian of Dusselhoof from its founding as an earth pony settlement long before the unification of Equestria. She knew of Doctor Strahlung Greenshift as a passing acquaintance, simply because they were both part of the university staff and would occasionally bump into each other at college-related social functions. When a Stable-Tec representative came to the small mountain town, many on the ruling Council were skeptical. They saw Stable-Tec as an invasive corporation and were very concerned about Dusselhoof being torn-up to be a haven for Canterlot socialites. However, the representative was able to persuade them that their close proximity to Canterlot put them at a great threat. A compromise was reached that at least 75% of the Stable-dwellers and all of the leading staff must come from Dusselhoof. Overmare It is not clear if the Stable 76 experiment was determined before or after these negotiations. This was unknown to Dusselhoof however. Construction began outside of Blackwood University, and Tulip Blossom had found herself assigned as the Overmare. Her encyclopedic knowledge of Dusselhoof's history was considered essential to preserve should the Great War actually occur. While excited for the opportunity, Tulip did not truly consider the ramifications of her assignment. Her political knowledge was very "academic" in the sense that the true dynamics and horrors of the war were detached for her. She did not truly grasp the possibility of the megaspell apocalypse actually happening. When The Last Day finally came, her sensitive psyche would break under the pressure. When the doomsday siren finally came through and she could see detonating Zebra weapons in the distance, her mind froze in a trance-like state. Greenshift and the others would have to hold her hoof to the control panel to get the Stable door to actually close. She would frequently return to the entrance and stare at the Stable's cog door for hours at a time. She would only leave when pulled a way to be fed or put to bed. She remained in this state for several months until after the partial meltdown of the Stable's liquid crystal reactor. When the balefire radiation breached the generator room, the main air vents near the Stable door entrance blasted her with exceedingly high doses. She was almost instantly ghoulified, bits of flesh being burned off and mutantly healed within seconds from the arcanic heat and magic. Head Councilpony Greenshift believes that shock to her system was one of the reasons she was able to snap out of the entranced state she was in. When he discovered her sitting there in the entrance room, he was the one she recognized and would speak to first. Originally, Greenshift and the other members of the Stable staff thought her psychological break, and their inability to recover her Overmare password, were why they couldn't prevent the explosion. It wouldn't be until a century later that they discovered her password was never intended to work at all. They were trapped in Stable 76. This tortured Tulip for decades, thinking she had simply forgotten the correct password in the "weakness" of her mind during her psychological break. It wouldn't be until the experiment concluded on the 100th anniversary of The Last Day, that she was vindicated. Over the century, the 27 non-feral ghouls of Stable 76 lived peacefully together, all things considered. She and Greenshift grew closer and eventually married 3 years after the events. Their love proved to be as long-lasting as their ghoulish bodies and they remain married, closing in on two centuries together. After the door was opened, Tulip had the chance to prove herself as a leader. After forming a new Dusselhoof council, the survivors turned the irradiated town into a haven for ghouls. Tulip and the new council manage their relationship with other ghoul communities while Strahlung has devoted himself to finding a cure to ghoulism. Together they continue to do all they can to help ghouls everywhere. Quotes * "So of course they thought that Tulip, who was literally a living encyclopedia of Dusselhoof’s history for the last 2,000 years, should hold the highest political office. They paid no mind to choose someone with actual leadership qualities to lead a small group of ponies, in a closed space environment, after most of their family and friends had been consumed in magical fire… The poor girl, no amount of enthusiasm could have prepared her for the task." - Doctor Greenshift * "By the time I left the atrium, I felt as dead on the inside as I looked on the outside, which is when I saw one more heartbreaking sight. Sitting there in front of the stable door, I saw Tulip. On either side of the door were two large vents... pumping in the green mist. I trotted slowly up to her, as she sat staring at the door as she always had. As I walked beside her, the glowing muscle between her exposed ribs and vertebrae became more evident…" - Doctor Greenshift * "And love her I do, Tulip has brought so much life and joy to our otherwise dismal circumstances. It’s because of her that my new life has been actually wonderful…" - Doctor Greenshift Behind the Scenes * Like Greenshift and the other survivors of Stable 76, Tulip's character is meant to a metaphor to the Biblical character of Job. The story was meant to show the resilience of their spirits in the face of constant adversity. * Their characterization as incorruptible spirits is further emphasized in their long lasting marriage, as observed by Battered Blade and Diamondback. * Similar to other Confessions characters, her arc is in many ways the most significant of her episode's story. In this case, Greenshift is positioned moreso as the storyteller of her life than his own. * Greenshift would describe more of their story in the opening segment to episode 6, The Ice Mare. Category:EAST Corp Productions Category:Confessions of a Wasteland Pony Category:Characters (Confessions of a Wasteland Pony)